Visiting Cuba still prohibited outside of the 12 allowed activities

Visiting Cuba still prohibited outside of the 12 allowed activities
WRITTEN BY SHAMONTIEL VAUGHN POSTED: 05/26/2015, 03:23PM

Travel concerns are surfacing about whether people are legally traveling
to Cuba after President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro
resolved a 50-year dispute between the country and island. Obama also
reportedly plans to remove Cuba from the U.S.'s terrorism list after
being on it for 30 years.

Tampa may extend invitation to Cuba for signing of agreements
While there are still restrictions on travel, Associated Press reports
that even with the 36 percent increase in American visitors to Cuba
after filling out one of the 12 allowed reasons to visit, travelers go
"without much worry that anyone will check on its accuracy."

Robert Muse, an expert on the legal aspects of Cuba travel, told AP that
"there's been almost no active enforcement" of the tourism ban under the
Obama administration.

The 12 allowed reasons from the Cuban Assets Control Regulations (CACR),
according to U.S. Department of Treasury, to visit Cuba include:
- Family visits
- Official government business
- Journalism
- Professional research and meetings
- Educational activities
- Religious activities
- Public performances, clinics, workshops, exhibitions and athletic
competitions
- "Support for the Cuban people"
- Humanitarian projects
- Activities of private foundations or research for educational institutes
- Exporting or importing information or "information materials
- Travel related to some authorized export transactions

In the same Treasury document, Cuban travel outside of these reasons is
still not allowed.

Consistent with the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of
2000 (TSRA),
travel-related transactions involving Cuba are only permitted for the 12
categories of activities
identified in the CACR. Travel-related transactions for other purposes
remain prohibited.

However, there appears to be an exception to even these 12. People who
would like to travel to Cuba who do not meet the requirements of a
general license from those 12 categories just have to apply for a
specific license from the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

Source: Visiting Cuba still prohibited outside of the 12 allowed
activities | Tampa Sun Times -
http://tampa.suntimes.com/tpa-news/7/85/168164/visiting-cuba-still-prohibited-outside-12-allowed-activities/